1. 5.1 Field of the Current Invention
The invention is a small, lightweight, portable cooking stove that uses alcohol as fuel.
2. 5.2 Prior Art
Portable cooking stoves designed to use alcohol as a fuel are well known to prior art. These are used by hikers, campers, backpackers, hunters and others who have a need to boil water or cook a hot meal in remote locations or primitive conditions. As a fuel, alcohol has various advantages over petroleum based fuels. Alcohol is widely available, inexpensive, convenient, relatively innocuous and easy to handle. It can be readily repackaged and safely carried in lightweight plastic bottles. Alcohol stoves are typically smaller and lighter than petroleum-fueled stoves. Alcohol stoves are typically also very simple, reliable and easy to use, and have few, if any, moving parts. Because of these advantages, alcohol-fueled stoves are very popular in many parts of the world. However, in the United States they have had limited popularity. This limited popularity is primarily due to two factors.
The first factor that has limited the popularity of alcohol-fueled stoves in the United States is their overall poor performance. Under the best conditions, the heat output from these stoves is marginal. In real outdoor conditions of wind and weather, these stoves rapidly become incapable of cooking a meal. These stoves demonstrate a variety of forms and features that cause inefficient performance and wasted heat. The overall inefficient performance of alcohol stoves known to prior art also causes an excessive consumption of fuel. This is undesirable both due to the increased cost of operating the stove, as well as the increased weight of fuel that must be carried.
The second factor that has limited the popularity of alcohol-fueled stoves in the United States is the inability to effectively adjust the heat output of the stove. Often these stoves provide no manner of heat adjustment. When they do, it is commonly effected by means of some type of snuffer in the form of a partial lid, cap or cover that is positioned in such a way that partially interferes with or throttles the flame. This method of adjusting the heat output has several disadvantages. Positioning or adjusting of the snuffer can be a rather awkward undertaking and requires removing the cooking pot or reaching under it. This presents a danger of burning or scalding. Often the cooking pot must be completely removed from the stove and set aside while positioning the snuffer. Obstructing the flame in this way tends to produce a small hot spot on the bottom of the cooking pan and prevents the even distribution of heat for thorough and rapid cooking.
In summation, the two primary factors that have limited the popularity of alcohol stoves in the United States are their overall poor performance and the inconvenience with which the heat adjustment is effected. Similarly, petroleum-fueled stoves enjoy a broad popularity primarily due to their advantages of high heat output and the ability to adjust this heat output for control of the cooking process. These advantages are generally viewed as outweighing their numerous disadvantages. The disadvantages include the need for bulky and heavy metal fuel containers, high operating cost, poor operation in wind or cold weather, need to constantly tend them during cooking, odor, danger of fuel spills, complexity, poor reliability, the need to carry maintenance kits, and the possibility of dangerous flare-ups when lighting the stove. In light of these numerous disadvantages, the importance of high heat output and adjustable cooking performance in determining the overall utility and popularity of a stove is clearly seen.